Alastair Ulke

A £650,000 refurbishment for a chemotherapy suite at Northampton General Hospital has been almost entirely funded by local donations.

'Thousands' of Northamptonshire's local fundraisers were thanked at an official opening yesterday (June 12) for donating over £500,000 towards the renovation.

The refurbishment included improved lighting and four additional treatment bays.

The suite, which treats over 450 chemotherapy day case patients a month, has been fitted with four extra treatment bays to reduce waiting times for patients with improved lighting to make a 'welcoming and calm environment'.

A post on the hospital's Facebook page said: "We know many of you who raised funds were motivated by your own or a loved one's experience of cancer, and we've been deeply moved by your stories.

"As we celebrate the opening of our new chemotherapy suite, we want to send the most heartfelt thanks to everyone who shaved their head, abseiled down the Northampton Lift Tower, run through muddy obstacle courses, baked immeasurable amounts of cake and done other wonderful things to raise over half-a-million pounds for this campaign."

The additional £150,000 needed for the refurbishment was made up by the Northamptonshire Healthcare Charitable Trust, who led the fundraising campaign.

A spokeswoman for Northampton General Hospital said: "Whether it was abseiling down the Lift Tower or hosting a tea party, we’re so grateful to everyone who supported the campaign. On behalf of our patients and our staff, thank you.”

“The formal opening was our chance to say thank you to the thousands of local people, groups and businesses who’ve supported the fundraising campaign. Over the course of the campaign, we were privileged to hear so many personal stories about why people were motivated to raise money for us and this campaign really galvanised our local community."

During the refurbishment, treatment for patients receiving chemotherapy was relocated to elsewhere on the hospital site.